


swaying the boat

by WingsOfTime



Series: rakey boi <3 [1]
Category: Pillars of Eternity
Genre: M/M, featuring iselmyr with one line
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-20
Updated: 2019-04-20
Packaged: 2020-01-20 15:58:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18528340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WingsOfTime/pseuds/WingsOfTime
Summary: If theDefiantcould talk, it would say, "Hey, Xoti. Love you being horny on main, but the Watcher is unfortunately taken."





	swaying the boat

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by when i ran a test save and broke up with aloth, and xoti immediately tried to jump my bones. good times

Hurried, stammering words. Raised hands, to placate or ward off or both, barely an inch away from Xoti as he is. Rake winces, trying to gently hold off her wrists so she doesn’t get too touchy—as she is wont to do—while trying not to seem too touchy himself. Desperate hands, and—

“I _want_ you, Watcher.”

Desperate advances. Oh boy.

The noise of his cabin door creaking open is one that floods him with relief, and he leaps at the opportunity to have an excuse to separate himself from Xoti.

The man who enters is none other than Aloth Corfiser, snapping his grimoire shut as he looks up to make a comment on whatever spell has caught his attention this week. He stops when he sees them, blinking a few times and leaving his mouth hanging a little open like a moderately attractive elven fish. Whatever he was going to say fades into surprise.

“Aloth!” Rake wastes no time in shimmying over to him. “Right on time! Sorry, Xoti, but Aloth and I need to discuss something… um, important. Another time, maybe?”

“Oh. Okay.” Xoti sounds confused, but also a little suspicious. “Uh... I guess that’s why you’re in his cabin?”

The question is directed at Aloth, who, to his credit, seems to gather himself fairly quickly. He gives her a curt nod.

“Yes.” He spreads his hands. “We were planning to have a rather in-depth conversation about the metaphysical similarities between Arkemyr’s work and … ah, more lesser-known masters of illusions.” He flutters his hand with a small smile, as if to brush the matter off. “Terribly droll to you, I’m certain.”

“Sure sounds it.” Xoti gifts Rake with a beaming smile, which he tries his best to return. “Alrighty then! We can talk later, Rake?”

“Mhm!” Rake waggles his fingers, a little too quickly. “Definitely.”

Xoti pauses at the door. “I’ll always be here if you… _need_ me, okay?” she says with a wink, and then she’s gone.

Rake can feel his face burn. Aloth seems amused, either at his reaction or the situation in general. He raises his eyebrows at the closing door before quirking a smile at Rake.

“What was _that_ all about?” There’s more entertainment in his tone than is probably warranted.

Rake narrows his eyes at him. “Arkemyr’s Dazzling incapability of warding off over-familiarity,” he says, although he lets a begrudging smile tug at his lips to soften his words. Oh, Xoti.

“That doesn’t sound like a very good name for a spell,” Aloth remarks, tone still lilting. “The trick to efficiency is conciseness.”

Rake rolls his eyes, but walks forwards, giving Aloth a gentle hug hello. It is readily returned; a quick, comforting squeeze that brings more warmth than Xoti’s flameless lantern ever could.

“Aloth.” Rake takes his hands, frowning speculatively at a spot on the ground. He feels somewhat uncertain, but certainty has never been Aloth’s strong point, and they can’t _both_ stew on things while waiting for the right push. “I’ve been thinking—and that just now, with Xoti—maybe we should tell the others about us. Or at least not try to hide it.”

Aloth runs his thumbs over their hands and tilts his head, seemingly considering his suggestion. Rake watches the blue in his eyes as they momentarily gaze off into the distance, lost in thought.

After a few seconds, he gives one firm, decisive nod. “If you wish to, I do not have any particular objections,” he says. His fingers twitch, and Rake guesses that this is the point where he would normally fiddle with them out of nervous habit. “I would just ask, ah, that we try and keep our more private matters… private?”

Rake grins. Before he can jump at the opportunity to grossly misinterpret his words, Iselmyr, with a rakish twist of Aloth’s usually composed features, gets there before him.

“Are ye sure, lad?” she says. She echoes his grin on Aloth’s face. “Fye, the bonnie lass sure seemed canny oan _those_ details!”

She cackles. Her glee lingers for a moment before shifting into a familiar exasperated expression.

“N- _nobody_ is getting any knowledge of anything that happens in this room, and I’ll make both of you swear on it.” Aloth rolls his eyes, doing his best to tamp down on his embarrassment even as the tips of his ears turn red.

“Only in this room? Got it,” Rake says innocently. “I swear _nobody_ will know about all of the fascinating conversations we’ve had about books.”

Aloth rolls his eyes again, but can’t quite hide the twitch of his lips. “Good,” he says. Then his expression turns more serious. “That is all I ask, Rake. Privacy is scarce on a ship, especially one as small as this. And…” He looks down at their hands, then back up. “You know I’m a private person.”

“I do know, Aloth.” Rake regards him with lowered eyelids. “And don’t worry, I’ll respect that. Although, uh… I’m pretty sure Edér already knows.” He offers him a tilted smile. With teeth.

 “It _is_ in his nature to be unnecessarily nosy,” Aloth agrees. He sighs, but gives a half-smile back to show he doesn’t mind overmuch.

Rake is about to let the matter rest, and then pauses as he remembers something.

“Oh, and Tekēhu knows too,” he adds as an afterthought, recalling a warm conversation in the steaminess of the bathhouse.

Aloth sputters, his face going suddenly scarlet. “ _T_ e _kēhu?!”_ he squeaks indignantly.

Iselmyr’s chortling can be heard all throughout the _Defiant_.

~*~


End file.
